Royal Outfit of the Day: Mary at the Crown Prince Couple's Prizes

The annual Crown Prince Couple's Prizes were presented this weekend. Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary awarded prizes honoring work in cultural and social areas, and for up and coming innovators.

Bjarne Hermansen/Bikubenfonden

As she did last year, Crown Princess Mary used her prize appearance to try out something new-to-her in Danish design: bridal designer Maria Fekih (per StyleofMary and Heaven). It's a wool crepe cocktail dress with gold glitter dots on the top, overall a basic addition to the Little White Dress section of her wardrobe.

Maria Fekih "Esther" Dress

Mary added a matching belt with the gold dots. I kind of want a solid gold belt instead? Maybe?

Bjarne Hermansen/Bikubenfonden

Definite yes on the metallic sparkle shoes, though. And perhaps one of the rare times when I'll also give a strong yes to a coat simply draped over the shoulders. (Although when one can fully cape it instead, one should definitely still cape it.)

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As perfectly demonstrated when the couple visited the Kunsten Museum of Modern Art during their trip to Aalborg for the prizes, see. CAPE IT.

Royal Dress of the Day: Princess Beatrice's Sparkly Bow

Always good to start the week with something sparkly n' glam.

Princess Beatrice attended the 9th Annual Global Gift Gala on Friday.

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Gucci's been doing these trompe l'oeil bows for a while now, with varying degrees of success. The dress Beatrice picked is absolutely one of the better deployments of the faux bow design - the sequin embellishment brings all the interest to what would otherwise be a very boring gown. Well chosen, I think.

Gucci contrast bow-tied maxi dress from the Pre-Fall 2018 collection

Tiara Watch of the Day: Queen Mathilde in Portugal

It's a multi-tiara event week, buckle your seat belts. (Speaking of which, don't forget that you can find our quickest coverage of the British/Dutch state visit over at the Jewel Vault, before it is covered here.)

King Philippe and Queen Mathilde began a state visit to Portugal yesterday.

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First up in this week's state visits are the Belgians in Portugal. Queen Mathilde arrived in a repeated Armani outfit with a delicate lace coat and satiny dress, topped by a Philip Treacy hat. This outfit was debuted last year during events commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Passchendaele.

With the President of the Portuguese Republic
Belgian Royal Palace

Mathilde originally wore this for the Last Post ceremony, an event that went into evening. I think maybe that suited it better - although it's certainly easy to see why she categorized it as an outfit special enough for a state visit. That lace is like gossamer. (Also, she should wear more Philip Treacy hats.)

Belgian Royal Palace

The Queen rolled that gossamer feel right into the state banquet, wearing a new gown in a soft shade of sparkle blergh. The sash situation here is tricky. Making both the Grand Collar of the Order of Prince Henry the Navigator and a sash look neat and tidy is a feat that's eluded two queens in a row now.

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Anyway, this state banquet managed to provide multiple tiaras for us. Firstly, the Queen wore her Laurel Wreath Tiara. It was a wedding gift and her primary tiara for years and years; it's now one she's used for other visits like this one, to a republic.

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The Duke and Duchess of Braganza are also regulars at these banquets. (The Duke is a claimant to the defunct Portuguese throne.) The pink-clad Duchess still has a few tiara options at her disposal; this one is a lovely necklace piece.

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Also present (and kindly sharing on her Instagram) was Princess Diana d'Orléans, Duchess of Cadaval, with her husband Prince Charles-Philippe d'Orléans. The Portuguese noblewoman wore the Cadaval Tiara, a tiara of diamonds and pearls she wore on her wedding day.

Qualifies as an A+ tiara turnout, I'd say! That's a good start to the week.

Royal Dress of the Day: Princess Charlene's Glam Ocean Gala

A bunch of you contacted me about this appearance right away yesterday, because: 1) it's a caftan, 2) it's a CAPED caftan, and 3) hello, it sparkles. So...that's about as far up my alley as you can get, basically.

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Prince Albert and Princess Charlene attended the Monte-Carlo Gala for the Global Ocean last night.

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Charlene!! When she wants to bring it, she can BRING IT. And so she brought it, balancing out the sparkly shoulder on this Oscar de la Renta caped caftan with a big diamond cuff on the opposite wrist for good measure. I hope she dramatically swooped around all night long.

Oscar de la Renta Navy Embroidered Illusion and Stretch-Georgette Cape-Back Caftan (h/t to reader Anne)

One thing, though...while I've long since resigned myself to the fact that Charlene doesn't really wear tiaras and her events in Monaco aren't tiara events anyway, this gown is just crying out for the Ocean Tiara. That's all.

That's all about Charlene, I mean, because we also had some Casiraghi action in the house:

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Andrea Casiraghi and Tatiana Santo Domingo were there. This dress...feels about right for her.

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Pierre Casiraghi and Beatrice Borromeo were also on hand. Beatrice has fur and fringe going on, which is bonkers and super swishy and fun. Eh, why not?

Royal Dress of the Day: Monday Sparkle from Mary

Mary's back again with some sparkle n' swish to open your week.

Crown Princess Mary and Princess Benedikte attended a gala performance in honor of Tivoli's 175th anniversary last week.

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Tory Burch silk chiffon dress (h/t to Heaven)

This pleasingly walks the line between a maxi dress for just, you know, kickin' around, and a serious blinged up gown, no? A teensy touch of sparkle in a sporty way. Perfect for the occasion. (Bonus points awarded for using the necktie as a belt. Because a necktie, really?)

A post shared by Tivoli | København (@tivolicph) on Aug 15, 2018 at 11:14am PDT

Royal Outfit of the Day: Charlene at the Red Cross Ball

Prince Albert and Princess Charlene attended the 70th Red Cross Ball in Monaco.

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So we're doing The Little Mermaid of Monaco? That...is completely and totally fitting.

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The gown's a bit of a work of art itself, fully beaded with degradé Swarovski crystal scales in blue and gold, by Atelier Versace. For a state banquet? Nah. But this isn't that. This is a glitzy society event, and Charlene can get her mer-princess on any time.

Royal Flashback of the Day: Princess Madeleine's Christening Looks

Swedish royal christenings have been very good to Princess Madeleine, sartorially. Or, I should say, she's made them very good. A flashback of her looks during the recent run of Swedish christening fun - and in case you weren't keeping count, that's been a serious run; they've had seven of them in the last six years! - reveals two of my all-time favorite Madeleine outfits and only one I'd say was a disaster. That's not a bad record. Not bad at all. (Click the kids' names to return to the individual christening posts.)

2012: Princess Estelle

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The first one turns out to be the most forgettable, this lavender belted coat with veil headpiece. I remember it mostly because she made the delicious choice to use diamond drops from the Connaught Tiara as earrings.

2014: Princess Leonore

Anna-Lena Ahlström/Kungahuset.se

Two years later and it's Madeleine's turn to hold the baby. The first of her three was marked in a lace dress by Valentino which was very sweet and very short and very pink and very veiled. (I still think the veil with nothing much else to it looks silly.)

2015: Prince Nicolas

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Oh, but the second time was the charm, for this is one of those all-time faves. A Valentino so rich for the October season - and such a welcome break from all the pastels these christenings tend to produce - and so perfectly coordinated by bringing the color from the bottom of the skirt up to the fascinator. LOVE.

2016: Prince Oscar

Anna-Lena Ahlström, Kungahuset.se

She followed that all-time fave with the other all-time fave: the very best royal interpretation of the SLEEVES trend (sorry, Máxima), in a pink Roksanda Ilincic dress. Another fascinator is well deployed here. Best to leave all the volume to the SLEEVES.

2016: Prince Alexander

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Madeleine has a knack for picking the best from the Erdem pile. (Another example made your Best of 2017 list.) This one was practical, too; left all the froof at home and out of the way for the kid wrangling.

2017: Prince Gabriel

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One disaster, I said. Here it is. (She was pregnant with Princess Adrienne at the time.) The Valentino dress is kind of juvenile and it doesn't work with the coat, which she left on throughout the service. The whole thing feels more haphazard than we've come to expect from her.

2018: Princess Adrienne

Erika Gerdemark, Kungahuset.se

The latest addition to the christening outfit collection is, if nothing else, a return to a totally pulled together look. The Giambattista Valli dress, the flower crown, and the pieces of the Cameo parure make a pretty and carefully coordinated picture. My third favorite of the pack.

How do you rank Madeleine's christening looks?

Royal Dresses of the Day: A Mathilde and Máxima Update

Three cute dresses from two members of the M-Team:

King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima attended the Liberation Day concert this weekend.

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This dress is a sparkly dream ready for a twirl, I just sooooo wish this shade of tan wasn't the color of choice for the accessories. The dress is a customized Claes Iversen and it seems like the belt on the runway version was maybe a touch darker, which I like better.

Queen Mathilde attended the vocal semi-finals of the Queen Elisabeth Music Competition.

Belgian Monarchy

Asymmetrical navy, white, and bronze stripes? Yes please! I adore this. It's a new Belgian designer for her, Cédric Charlier, and this is a promisingly cute debut.

King Philippe and Queen Mathilde attended the first session of the vocal finals for the Queen Elisabeth Competition.

Belgian Monarchy

Nothing says Is it time for my summer holiday yet? like a boldly printed one-shoulder dress with starfish earrings. And nothing says absolute dedication to matching accessories quite like a clutch in nearly right shade of tennis ball. (I am completely dying that she went for it with the hardest color to match in this whole dress, honestly. Bless.)

Cédric Charlier asymmetric striped metallic knitted midi dress, Dries van Noten Spring 2018 RTW print dress (per Modekoningin Mathilde)

Royal Trip of the Day: The Cambridges in Norway, Day 1

The splendor that many of us had hoped this trip would bring finally arrived. It just took a trip to Norway and a dinner hosted by a king and queen to make it happen.

On the first day of their trip to Norway, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge attended a dinner at the Royal Palace hosted in their honor by King Harald and Queen Sonja. Crown Prince Haakon, Crown Princess Mette-Marit, Princess Märtha Louise, and Princess Astrid were also present.

Kensington Palace

Ah, gowns! Good ones! A print for Märtha Louise, a favored shiny purple repeat for Sonja, and a bright coral for Astrid flanked the evening's two standout pale dresses for Kate and Mette-Marit (and, of course, the gentlemen in their tuxes).

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The only thing wrong with this Alexander McQueen dress is that Kate doesn't have any state banquets coming up where she could pair it with a tiara. It's an elegant way to do a maternity gown and it has wonderful movement, because CAPE.

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She didn't forget to bring along her diamonds, either: both the Diamond Pendant Earrings and the Wedding Gift Bracelet are on loan from the Queen.

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After a 2017 wardrobe that left many of us with a general feeling of sartorial ennui, Mette-Marit's coming out swinging for 2018. This metallic gem is fabulously detailed and a great spin on her usual fare. (Also: excellent deployment of a red lip.)

On arrival earlier in the day, the Duke and Duchess were greeted by the Crown Prince and Crown Princess and met with the royal family at the palace. They were then joined by Princess Ingrid Alexandra for a visit to the Princess Ingrid Alexandra Sculpture Park.

Kensington Palace

The family that blue coats together stays together, I guess. (With twin red scarves thrown in for good measure.) Kate's really loading up on her Catherine Walker for this trip - and she wouldn't miss an opportunity for another blue coat.

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Nor an opportunity for another blue dress! This one's from Séraphine. Queen Sonja's looking sharp in white, as she always does.

Sven Gj. Gjeruldsen, Det kongelige hoff

 (The Norwegian royal court gives us photos of the gifts exchanged between the royals, because they know we're nosy like that, which is nice of them.)

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Outside, I have no applause for the added furry hat; I have several claps and an approving nod for Queen Sonja's splendidly bright coat and scarf combo; I have a standing ovation for the person that picked this rainbow sculpture for the park, because that's how you make a great photo op.

The trip ends Friday, phew!

Tiara Watch of the Day: Sparkle at Norway's Parliament Dinner

Three tiaras graced the halls of Norway's Royal Palace last week for the royal family's annual gala dinner for the parliament (the Stortingsmiddag), let's catch up:

Norway royal family yesterday-26 october 2017 #mettemaritofnorway #kingharald #queensonja

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Queen Sonja brought her big gun, Norway's emerald parure, which I would say was an interesting color choice, if we didn't already know that she has no trouble pairing it with any given color. Not that green is a far out choice for an aqua skirt in the first place, of course.

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I do find myself thinking about how lovely Queen Josephine's Diamond Tiara would have been nice here though. Right? Maybe I'm always thinking that.

Crown Princess Mette-Marit and Princess Astrid of Norway this night 🇳🇴 #princessmettemarit #princessastrid #norway #europe #royal #norweiganroyals

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Crown Princess Mette-Marit - escorting an aigrette-wearing Princess Astrid; Crown Prince Haakon was in Thailand - opted for a new pink dress, reportedly by Marte Krogh's Norwegian label Koma by Marte. The navy dress Mette-Marit wore during Harald and Sonja's birthday celebrations earlier this year was from the same designer. It's a good look for our fair CP, still in her light colored comfort zone, but blissfully ruffle-free.

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M-M's colorful tiara choice was a surprise. I'd have bet on the Diamond Daisy here and I'd thankfully have lost that bet, because she went for the Amethyst Necklace Tiara and its parure and the outfit's all the better for that little bit of contrast. Not that you'd expect me to argue with amethysts in the first place or anything.

Royal Outfit of the Day: The Countess of Wessex Hats Up

It feels like it's been too long since we saw the British royals in Special Occasion Mode. Hats and the lot, you know. I suppose it hasn't actually been that long and you have to take the Queen out of the equation, because hats and the lot is her Permanent Mode, but still. What I'm trying to say here is that I'm delighted to see that Sophie hatted up nice and proper last week.

The Countess of Wessex attended the Headley Court Farewell Parade on Friday.

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You know this is Special Occasion Mode because it's a repeat from a Very Special Occasion: QEII's 90th birthday service in 2016.

Royal Family

This is such a Sophie classic. It's two of her favorite designers, a bespoke Suzannah coat dress in a sleek silhouette with a Jane Taylor hat and a sweeping updo. She loves a midi length, and this one is careful not to overwhelm. Chic, I say.

The "Sophie" Wrap Coat Dress from Suzannah

Only fitting they named the design after her.

Royal Outfit of the Day: Princess Charlene at the Red Cross Ball

It's always wise to armor oneself when heading into battle.

The Prince and Princess of Monaco attended the Red Cross Ball on Friday.

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Or when heading into a ball, as the case may be. And there's generally no one better to provide the most sparkly of armor than Atelier Versace, as Princess Charlene clearly knows. This is a striking look, no? I think she's finally cracked the code to keeping her look as modern as she likes while still maximizing her impact.

That said, I wouldn't have said no to one of her more fabulous pairs of dangling earrings here. (There's always room for more impact, if you ask me.) But clearly she doesn't want to be encumbered when in her armor.

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Not even by a skirt.

P.S.: Don't forget to make your nominations for Readers' Favorite Tiaras, The Rematch! Nominations close Tuesday (tomorrow) at noon Eastern.

Royal Dresses of the Day: Swedish Royals at the Polar Music Prize

Red alert! Red alert! Crown Princess Victoria wore her hair DOWN!

The Swedish royal family attended the ceremony of the prestigious Polar Music Prize, awarded this year to Sting and Wayne Shorter.

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She SORTA wore her hair DOWN! This is a rare and caps lock-worthy thing. Soak in the variety, because it could be years before you see it again. Victoria usually goes a little bit "edgy" for this music event, this year scooping up her leftover aluminum foil and fashioning herself a silver frock with modern jewelry to boot. It's a whole sculptural thing. And the softness of the half updo actually works as a sort of anchor to this space age craft. She's pulling it off.

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The crinkles do take over without the bouquet, though. Queen Silvia and Princess Madeleine came dressed as their own bouquets, pretty in pink flowers.

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I'm getting a strong sense of déjà vu for Madeleine. Following up on her large floral skirt and blouse from the last Nobel Prize ceremony, I find myself wondering just how many of these combos a single closet could need? Will we ever see the pieces split up and styled differently? These are the questions. (Bonus Princess Christina and Tord Magnuson sighting behind Madeleine and Carl Philip! She's been laying low for a while after having a stem cell transplant to fight cancer, so it's fabulous to see her out and about.)

Royal Flashback of the Day: Margrethe and Henrik's Silver Wedding

Queen Margrethe and Prince Henrik will celebrate 50 years of marriage on June 10th, and so far it seems they'll do so without much public fanfare. (Although they were joined this week by the rest of the Danish royal family to unveil their gift to each other: a statue, designed by Prince Henrik, in the Fredensborg Palace gardens.) This is in sharp contrast to the scene 25 years ago, when the couple celebrated their silver wedding anniversary with two tiara-filled gatherings. You don't have to know much about Queen Margrethe to know that she ordered up two extra-special gala gowns for the occasions.

There was, of course, a big official banquet with loads of royal guests in their very finest. The banquet was held at Kronborg Castle, the Renaissance structure that doubles as Elsinore in Hamlet, so naturally Queen Margrethe chose to wear a Renaissance-inspired gown by Jørgen Bender, her wedding dress designer and longtime couturier.

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The dress is made from distressed silver and gold-woven silk brocade with dramatic cape sleeves and a square neckline. Perhaps even more dramatic were her jewelry choices: the Pearl Poire Tiara and a selection of diamond jewels borrowed from the crown jewels at Rosenborg Castle.

Ten of these ornaments were used on Margrethe's dress

The large necklace, earrings, and brooch in the center of her gown have been worn on multiple occasions, including Crown Prince Frederik's wedding. More rare were the diamond ornaments that once belonged to Princess Charlotte Amalie of Denmark (1706-1782), which Queen Margrethe placed down her sleeves. It was the first time in generations these pieces had actually been worn. The poster child for unusual brooch placement, isn't she? LOVE.

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A moment for Margrethe's mother, Queen Ingrid, before we move on. A RED dress with a BOA on it, plus the all the Danish Rubies she can stand, hello! And she's pulling it off without a problem. No wonder Margrethe has such panache. There's a rare sight to the left there, too: Prince Henrik's mother, Countess Renée de Monpezat, wearing the diamond floral tiara today worn by Princess Marie. She borrowed a little treat from her daughter-in-law for the big shindig.

The royal couple also held a black tie n' tiara gathering at Fredensborg Castle, site of their wedding banquet back in 1967. Margrethe strung the pieces of the Floral Aigrette Tiara in her hair and draped a new necklace, a wedding anniversary gift from Prince Henrik with pearls, gold, and rubies, around her neck. And then there was her pièce de résistance:

A candidate for the most Disney royal gown of all time, wouldn't you agree? Absolute Cinderella, right down to the sweeping waltz with her prince.

Queen Margrethe worked with Jørgen Bender to make this fairy tale come to life. It used a reported 60 meters of tulle in varying shades, purchased in France. The off-the-shoulder gown features those mega sleeve details she couldn't help but love, plus silver star accents and asymmetrical floral trim across the bodice. Sweeping, yes, that's the word. (See it in motion here.) A princess dress indeed. A queen's dress, too...but maybe just for Daisy.

Royal Hairdo of the Day: Queen Letizia and her Ponytail

We've seen a lot of calls for Queen Letizia to bring back the bob lately. The razor-sharp short haircut she debuted back in 2015 really suited her; the infusion of swagger that came with it suited her even more. And now the hair is longer, and it feels like she's trying to bring that edginess without the scissors.

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Yesterday: The King and Queen of Spain celebrated the 60th anniversary 

of Europa Press.

If hair bubbles are what you'd consider edgy, that is. Let's just bring back the bob, Letizia.

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Okay, in fairness to La Reina, I can see how looking like this in a dress like that would put you in the mood to try something a little saucy with the rest of the look. It's Nina Ricci, and after Crown Princess Mary's affirmation yesterday - by the by, yesterday's post got a late update with day 2 of that Scandinavian lovefest - this serves only to further cement my love of an interesting hemline.

Dress from Nina Ricci Fall 2017 RTW
Casareal/Vogue

Seriously, though: let's think about bringing back that bob.

Tiara Watch of the Day: Sparkle in the Netherlands & Luxembourg

Kids, the day we all knew was coming has finally arrived: Queen Máxima's gone all in and decided that a business casual dress code should include tiaras too!

King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima hosted a gala reception for the Diplomatic Corps yesterday.

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...or not. As entertaining as the couple are in their mismatched outfits here, that's just them arriving at the Royal Palace for the dinner. They don't actually live at the Royal Palace, you see; the Queen gets ready at home and is all set to go on arrival, while others (including the King, Princess Beatrix, and Princess Margriet) toss on their formal best after arriving. Willem-Alexander was properly white tie attired on the way out of the event. I'll have to keep the dream of business casual tiaras alive for another time.

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Anyway, Máxima topped a ten-year-old Natan dress with the Württemberg Ornate Pearl Tiara, plus diamond and pearl earrings and a diamond and pearl strawberry leaf brooch from Queen Sophie (1818-1877). Some color would have been nice here, though? Even just a bit? Mega tiara appearances shouldn't be this blergh, is what I'm saying.

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Princess Beatrix joined her daughter-in-law in pulling from the family stash of pearls and diamonds. The Pearl Button Tiara is getting around these days, having made its debut on Princess Mabel earlier this month.

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And finally, Princess Margriet was looking saucy in sparkly green, with the Dutch Emerald Parure on top and hubby Pieter van Vollenhoven (see? White tie) by her side.


But wait! There's more! Tiaras were also on parade in Luxembourg yesterday.

Grand Duke Henri, Grand Duchess Maria Teresa, Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume, and Hereditary Grand Duchess Stéphanie hosted a state banquet for the President of Portugal during his state visit to Luxembourg.

SIP/Charles Caratini

Go ahead and give Maria Teresa alllllll the structured metallic dresses you've got, please and thank you. And let's hope she continues to accessorize them with massive diamond collet necklaces and the Belgian Scroll Tiara.

Dîner de gala au palais grand-ducal https://t.co/bmGzZXHHKu pic.twitter.com/N9LJBgJvOQ

— GouvernementLU (@gouv_lu) May 23, 2017

Despite her valiant effort to match her sash from Portugal's Order of Merit without looking like a bumblebee, Stéphanie's look suffers one major setback: her tiara. This modern diamond butterfly motif tiara (see it closer here, from another occasion) is never going to convince me it wasn't a clearance rack find at Claire's in another life, and that's that.